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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27440488">What If: Azula Fell at the Air Temple</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/sldlovestv18/pseuds/sldlovestv18'>sldlovestv18</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, It turned into Gaang finds out about Zuko’s scar fic, Minor Character Death, Suki and Toph are also there, but that not the point, so it isn’t dwelled on, what if</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 02:08:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,491</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27440488</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/sldlovestv18/pseuds/sldlovestv18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>What is says on the tin: what if Azula didn’t survive  the fight at the air temple.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>180</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>avatar tingz</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>What If: Azula Fell at the Air Temple</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>What If: Azula Fell</p><p>Zuko fell onto Appa’s saddle, feeling immediate relief that he wasn’t going to be a smear at the bottom of the misty cannon. He sat up and that’s when he noticed that Azula was falling. She must have been knocked off by the blast, too. The Firebender hadn’t noticed while he was falling to his death, but now he wasn’t falling to his death and she still was. </p><p> “She’s not going to make it.” He knew he was glaring, but part of him was upset that his sister was probably about to die. It was deep down, really deep, but it was there and he was sure it was bleeding into his voice. Damn. </p><p> Azula suddenly propelled herself by her feet to the cliff face, taking out the sticks that held her hair up to stab into the mountain. Yep, a real Azula move. Zuko’s heartbeat started slowly down as a strange mix of relief and disappointment steeped into his bones, watching her slide down. </p><p> Then the pins snapped in half, not built for cliff stabbing, and kept falling. Zuko’s heart stopped. </p><p> He didn’t noticed he had lurched forward and started to lean over the saddle until he felt two hands grab his shoulders and pull him back. He fought against them a bit so he could keep his eyes on Azula as she disappeared into the mist. His ears and mouth felt like they were full and he felt like nothing was real. </p><p> “Zuko!” Katara’s voice yelled, snapping him out of it. The look on her face said this wasn’t the first time she called out to him. He looked at the others in the saddle and while he couldn’t decipher what their faces were telling him, but it made him uncomfortable so he went back to gazing off into the void. </p><p> “She could still be alive. While her fire bending can’t cancel out her terminal velocity, it could make it so she gets mild injuries and signal for rescue.”</p><p> “Zuko, Buddy...” Sokka said, trying to turn him around. Sokka’s eyes were all pity and sadness and it made the firebender’s temper flair.</p><p> “Don’t look at me like that!” Zuko jabbed a finger into his chest.</p><p> “Woah, dude, calm down-“</p><p> “I don’t need your pity!”</p><p> “Your sister just fell to her-“</p><p> “You don’t know anything  about me and my sister!” </p><p> “Don’t yell at Sokka! He’s just trying to make you feel better, you jerk!” Katara pushed him back away from Sokka, glaring at him. The waterbender reminded him of Azula so much in the moment that he wanted to puke. </p><p> “Katara, it’s fine, he’s just-“</p><p> “Hey! Blind girl here! What happened? What happened to Azula? Is Sparky okay?” Toph yelled, and the water tribe siblings looked at each other and back to Zuko. Aang answered.</p><p> “Azula fell into the canyon.” Toph’s eyes widened and looked in the direction she heard Zuko’s voice in. “I think Zuko is still sorting out his feelings.” </p><p> “What’s there to sort? My sister was a monster, and now she’s dead. The End.” Zuko leaned against the saddle and crossed his arms. “She was crazy and she needed to go down. And those aren’t my words, Uncle said that, and he’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever known. Everybody in my family are determination machines. We run on ambition and spite. Azula wouldn’t have stopped until we were all dead and Aang was captured or dead.”  </p><p> “But she was you’re sister...” Sokka said, rubbing the back of his neck. “She was only... how old was she? And how old are you? Which of you is older? Both you are the sort of teenager where you are clearly teenagers but you look like you’re in you early twenties. You’ve never mentioned how old you are.”</p><p> “I’m sixteen, you moron!” Zuko snapped, before feeling immediate regret. “Ugh, sorry, that’s not you’re fault. Azula was my younger sister, she was fourteen.”</p><p> “That’s... my age.” Katara murmured, brows drawn together. </p><p> “That’s terrible, if Katara died I don’t know what I’d do.” Sokka had that stupid sad/pity look on his face and Zuko didn’t know if he wanted to cry, break Sokka’s face, or rip his own face off. </p><p> “Azula and I weren’t like you and Katara. The minute our firebending came in and our training started, she became somebody I didn’t recognize. We weren’t close.” Zuko sighed and tipped his head back. “And if it makes you feel better, she was almost fifteen. Just a few weeks.”</p><p> “Wow, I guess the fire nation really destroys everything to touches.” </p><p> “Suki!” Sokka tried to admonish. He didn’t disagree, but he didn’t want piss off Zuko right at this moment. </p><p> “Yeah.” Zuko snorted, covering his mouth to hide his bitter smile. Sokka relaxes. Thank goodness Zuko has a sort of fucked up sense of humor.</p><p> “She was still your sister. You have to have some positive memories with her.” Katara said, in that tone she used when she thought Zuko was lying. Zuko lowered his hand and looked to the side, eyes far away.</p><p> *flashback start*</p><p>“TAG!!!” Azula screeched, smacking her her brother upside the head as hard as she could with her three year-old arm and running in the opposite direction. </p><p> “Azula!” Cried Zuko as he spun around and gave chase.</p><p> “Azula, honey, we don’t tag people that hard.” Ursa called over while Ozai smirked.</p><p> “She’s got spirit.”</p><p> “Is that what we call it?” </p><p> Zuko didn’t hear the rest of what his parents said because he had gotten caught up in chasing his sister up the hill. Azula had little legs, but she ran so fast with them! She was so naturally athletic, even if she was still pretty much a baby. He was athletic too, but he was just as coordinated as his toddler sister. His father teased him about it, or he chose to believe it was teasing. Near the top of the hill, Azula turned sharply, she was going to start her diversion tactics in earnest. But before he could start to counter them Azula’s foot slipped from under her and she went tumbling down the hill. </p><p> “Azula!” The tiny prince gasps, running after her. He heard her yelp and started running faster, catching her when she reached the bottom. She was clutching her arm. “Mom! Mom! Azula hurt her arm!”</p><p> “I’m hurt, Zuzu, you do something!” Azula’s eyes welled with tears and her face started going well. </p><p> “... Let me see it, Lulu.” Zuko grumbled, making grabby hands towards her arm. </p><p> He hated using cutesy names, but Azula liked it. When he gets hurt, Mom calls him sweet names, so he can do it for her, even if it makes him feel like a big baby. Azula stuck her arm out. It was scrapped and was turning several shades of purple and red. Ow. Okay, what did Mom do for boo-boos? Kisses! He leaned down and kissed a scrape. It still had grass on it, but he was holding in his disgust. </p><p> “Awh, well it looks like Zuko has this handled.” Ursa said, crouching down next to them, Ozai not far behind. </p><p> “I need another.” Azula tried to shove her arm in his face. </p><p> “You just want me to kiss you.” He complained  and she looked like she was going to start crying. He gave her an extra kiss to a scrap. </p><p> Azula had a sprained wrist. She made Zuko kiss it everyday, because she wouldn’t have gotten hurt if she weren’t playing with him.</p><p>*flashback end*</p><p> “Zuko...” Sokka was using that gross, soft tone of voice. Then he noticed how wet his eyes were. Damn. He tried to wipe the tears away but more kept replacing them. Double damn. Sokka went to try and hug him and Zuko squirmed to get away.</p><p>  “N-no. Don’t.” Zuko’s voice warbled and he wanted to die. “I’m not upset. I- I’m not. She was monster, sh-she needed t-to be stopped. Sh-she was trying to kill me, and I got her f-first. Oh... o-oh. I knocked her off the ship. Killed her. I killed my baby sister.” His eyes went wide and he went from squirming to thrashing, and he started to pull his hair. </p><p> “Zuko, calm down, you’re going to throw yourself off.” Sokka was less hugging and more grappling at this point.</p><p> “What would mother say?” Zuko wheezed and Katara started to move in now. “Oh Agni... what will I tell her if I find her? She’ll be be so disappointed. She’ll never forgive me. I’ll spend the rest of my days-“</p><p> “You’re moms alive?” Katara asked, trying to keep Zuko from spiraling. He was already going to die from embarrassment, and while she didn’t forgive him yet, after Boiling Rock she was trying to be nicer to him. He’d changed. She’d go back to snarking at him when he wasn’t having a break down. </p><p> “She was banished... she could be dead. She also probably killed Grandfather Azulon. Father- Fire Lord Ozai, he told me during the eclipse. Then he tried to kill me.” That was depressing, but Zuko was breathing like a person again so it was a net positive. Zuko curled up, giving up on escaping Sokka’s embrace, covering his face. “My family is so fucked up.”</p><p> “You just realized that now?” Toph said, while Aang gapped at the use of a swear word.  </p><p> It took a few minutes for Zuko to stop crying. His sniffling tapering out, and for a second nobody moved. Then, something unexpected happened. Zuko slowly opened his arms up and returned the hug Sokka had him trapped in. When Zuko pulled away Sokka let him go. The former prince looked up at the group, and they were all staring, and he felt his body fill up with red hot shame. </p><p> “I’m... sorry about that- that you had to see that. It won’t happen again.” Zuko remembered the last time he showed weakness and started to scratch at his scar. </p><p> “It’s okay, man...” </p><p> “There’s nothing wrong with crying! The monks told me that all emotions are essential, and if you want to reach peace then you have to understand them. I think you can’t understand them if you don’t experience them.” Said Aang, almost dropping the reins. </p><p> “I didn’t mean to put that on you, it’s early- I’m normally better holding- not that I don’t trust you with my emotional whatevers-“ Zuko went on, not hearing them.</p><p> “Emotional whatevers?”</p><p> “- because you are great. It’s just that sort of thing would get me punished- shit, now I’m just vomiting more trauma all over you. It’s early, let’s just go back to sleep and forget I said anything, and that I cried. We’ll go to sleep and when we wake up, we pretend that nothing happened and I don’t have tear ducts.”</p><p> “I don’t know what to do with any of that.” Sokka.</p><p> “Me neither.” Toph, followed by agreements from the others. </p><p> “Sleep?” Tried Zuko, followed by five looks that said in no uncertain terms that that was a stupid idea. Then Katara’s face hardened into a look a focus.</p><p> “This group is like a family, you know that? You’re a part the group now, which means you’re in the family.” She has an intense look in her eyes that reminded him of Azula in a terrifying sort of way. It made him want to cry again. </p><p> “Katara, you hate me. Not that you are wrong for that-“</p><p> “I don’t hate you!” The fire in her eyes flashed before they softened up. “I can’t hate you after everything you’ve said and done since you came to us. It’s like... it’s like the time Sokka kissed my best friend, and I didn’t speak to him for three weeks and put too much salt in his food-“</p><p> “Pushed me into a snow drift.”</p><p> “But... more. I’m not to the forgiving you part yet, but you’re one of us.” The waterbender put a hand on in his shoulder and smiled at him. He smiled back.</p><p> “When I was twelve, Azula saw me kiss Tye Lee on the cheek, I was dared to by Mai but she missed that part, so she pushed me off a roof.” Zuko thought is only fair to share a cute sibling story, but that one sounded more disturbing when he said it out loud. </p><p> “Well... now you have three pseudo-sisters and two pseudo-brothers. And we’d only push you off a roof for good reasons.” Katara gave an awkward grin, removing her hand. Zuko’s relief at not being touched anymore died a horrific and terrible death when the water tribe boy wrapped an arm around his shoulder.</p><p> “We can be the cool older brothers together! Don’t worry, I can teach you the basics of how to be a big brother in a normal family.” Sokka had that smug look on his face and Zuko couldn’t help himself.</p><p> “You’re normal?” Toph and Suki burst into laughter, and Aang and Katara were snickering. Sokka looked like Zuko had stabbed him. “Sorry.”</p><p> “He’s a natural!” The Kyoshi Warrior snickered, remembering every other time the older brother of a warrior or warrior in training would drop by. Sokka quickly recovered back into arrogance.</p><p> “He’s got potential. He still to work on his playful teasing, how to be concerned without looking like a psycho, playful violence, casual nakedness, and most importantly the art of gross.” </p><p> “Do I want to know what that last one is while you’re touching me?” Zuko’s face scrunched up. </p><p> “As the older brothers, we are an example of masculinity, and that comes with a certain amount of gross. But it’s an art, because if you go to far you come off as childish or down right nasty. It’s mostly about well timed execution of bodily functions. A strong fart or burp every once in a while, for comedy, to assert dominance, or the make others feel better.” That got him shoved away.</p><p> “You’re disgusting.”</p><p> “He is, but he’s got a point.” Katara said, not even paying attention to his brother who was complaining loudly about how he wants a new family. “It’s childish, but brothers are gross. Its just the way they are. I can think of a few times were things were starting to drag and Sokka would just, let loose and then we’d all laugh at him.”</p><p> “I was always a brother, I don’t need help...” Zuko pouted, crossing his arms. “And I know how that sort of humor works. Uncle and Lu Ten were fans. I engaged in behaviors like that before our firebending came in. After that I had to learn manners.” A glare was sent to Sokka. </p><p> “Why then?” Zuko turned pink now.</p><p> “Azula would get mad. When we were little, I thought all that... stuff...”</p><p> “Farts?”</p><p> “Yeah, was funny, because I was five, but... okay, so Azula’s favorite way to inflict causal punishment was to set people’s butts on fire. So everytime she heard the tiniest sound from my butt she’d light it on fire.” Zuko became more red. “And then... it happened.”</p><p> “What did you do?” Toph said, knowing this had to be good.</p><p> “Okay, so, one of the first tricks little firebenders, well mostly the boys, do like as a fun joke is they... fart fire.” The shade of red he was reaching was alarming and the others started to snicker. “It’s a pretty basic technic. I had seen my cousin and some of the other noble boys do it and wanted to try. Long story short, I sort of set Azula on fire?”</p><p> “You didn’t!” </p><p> “I did. She did not take the laughter well. I have a scar on my butt to this day. I learned manners quickly, when it came to... that stuff. So I’ll pass on the art of gross.” </p><p> “See, we’ve got a good base to start with! He’s got a good start from before his sparks popped up, we just got to re-educate him a bit.”</p><p> “You don’t have to.” Groused Zuko, shoulders slumping. “None of you have set my face on fire or tried to kill me, as long it stays like that you’ll be leagues better then my family and I’ll be happy.”</p><p> Silence. They all stared at Zuko, processing that statement. He didn’t know what to do so he stared back.</p><p> “Azula gave you you’re scar? It wasn’t your...” Katara’s eyes were getting that look again.</p><p> “No, it was my father.” </p><p> Like a switch flipped, their faces changed. Suki was the most restrained, a sort of mix of respect and pity, her shoulders squared. Toph was doing a terrible job at restraining sadness. Aang’s eyes wide and he was already starting to cry. Sokka and Katara just seemed enlightened. All of them seemed shocked.</p><p> “... You didn’t know?” Zuko asked, triggering everybody to shout out at once that of course them hadn’t. </p><p> “Why didn’t you tell us? Why would he even do that?” Sokka had him back in a hug and Zuko just wanted this to be over with so he could grieve in peace and maybe meditate. </p><p> “I thought everybody knew.” He muttered, blowing Sokka’s hair away from his face. “When I was thirteen years old, I spoke out of turn, so he challenged me to a duel. When I refused to fight him, because he was my father and I loved him, he set my face on fire and banished me. I could only return if I captured the Avatar.” That was heavy, make a joke. “... you know, dad things?” Joke failed. </p><p> “That’s why...” It was Katara that spoke first, brows drawn together. He could see the gears turning in her head. </p><p> “Yeah. I just wanted to go home.”</p><p> “You know, I always wondered why you had so much trouble catching us when you had all those mad skills. You could break into an extremely secure stronghold without even using your bending but you couldn’t catch us? Seemed weird. I think, that even if you wanted it so badly, deep down your heart wasn’t in it.” Aang had a weird look in his eye, it made him uncomfortable. </p><p> “Yeah, something like that... my father always said I was too soft hearted. Kind. I mean, I was a brat, and I had a nasty temper, but I was still... just naturally gentle.” Zuko felt so weird spilling this all, very exposed, but he couldn’t stop. “Mom liked that about me.” </p><p> “Maybe that’s why you’ve taken so well to the Dragons way if firebending!” Aang said and yeah, that may be right. They didn’t talk about what happened during firebending practice with the others, but in the early days there was an adjustment period after the dragons because Aang was getting used it and Zuko was suddenly making much more fire than before. </p><p> “Maybe.”</p><p> “Why didn’t you tell us before? About what your dad did, about being banished.” Said Katara, yanking things back to a sad place. </p><p> “I thought you knew, everybody in the earth and fire nations did. And even if you didn’t, I wouldn’t want to make excuses. It wouldn’t make the things I did to you not happen, and it wouldn’t make the terrible person I became while I was banished go away.” Zuko shrugged, and Sokka let him go. He got to be relieved for two seconds before Katara latched on.</p><p> “You should have told us. It’d have helped us understand you, so we could have gotten comfortable sooner.” She mumbled, and then paused. “I change my mind, I’m ready to forgive you.”</p><p> “That’s all it took!? All I had to do was tell you my tragic backstory!?” </p><p> “It would have been easier to do sooner if you had!” </p><p> They might be bickering, but she was still hugging him. He finally hugged her back. She was really so much like Azula. Gifted, determined, and when they were mad... Yeah. Katara was like a non-psychotic Azula. Azula. His sister, who just died. Zuko was struck by a thought and it escaped his mouth before he could stop it.</p><p> “If Azula... if hadn’t just... do you think she could have been redeemed herself? She was made into a monster by our father, just like me. Maybe after we won... I could have gotten her help.”</p><p> “That’s a nice thought, Zuko. It’s too bad you and Azula were pitted against each other. You seem like you’d be a good big brother.” Toph said, breaking the silence that Zuko made with the question. They didn’t have an answer, he knew they didn’t. </p><p> “Getting soft on me?” Zuko said as he and Katara separated. </p><p> “You wish, Fire boy.”</p><p> Things settled after that and everybody in the saddled dozed until they found a safe spot to set up camp. When Zuko set up a flaming funeral vigil outside, nobody said anything. Katara joined him in sitting by it, and they talked about something they couldn’t hear. That night they left to find the man who killed her mother.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>When I was rewatching Avatar for the third time the idea for this got into my brain when Zuko saw her falling. I ended up writing it casually on my phone and it got away from and ending up becoming things it wasn’t supposed it. If you made it to the end of this: I am sorry. If you like it, have a favorite part/line?</p></blockquote></div></div>
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